"We owe how much?" You've been so good throughout the planning stage, making your plans and books your experts with smart budget decisions, finding creative ways to save. But as the big day approaches, your final payment amounts are growing and growing. We're at that stage now, with our wedding just 3 months away. Since we live in the Northeast, we're looking at a pretty big number as our final amount due and it's freaking us out. We thought about delaying the honeymoon, but that's all going to be wedding money and debit card action...so we're wading back into our plans to see where we can scale down.

Out comes our Priority List. Reception, gown and photos are our top ranking categories, so we won't change anything there. Hmmmm.....flowers. I can switch to two centerpieces per table rather than three, and that's $1,000 right there. Done! Sheryl Crow may say the First Cut is the Deepest, but the first cut is also the one that motivates you to keep cutting! We don't have to eliminate anything. We just have to change a few things, scale them back. No one's going to notice that there aren't three centerpieces, and they're not going to notice that there are no gardenias in them (ka-ching!). Daisies, it turns out, are far less expensive, and they're one of my favorite flowers. Joe also bought me a bouquet of daisies as his first bouquet to me. So that's perfect. Another $1,000 back in our pockets.

So your Don't Stress About Money tip for today is: go to your Priority List and find a category close to the bottom for a rewarding little adjustment to your plans. And remind yourselves about what's free. Even if it's just a ring pillow or an ice sculpture at the cocktail hour, it's still a victory over your budget!